selangor times june 3-5, 2011 / issue 27
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Community paper in SelangorTRANSCRIPT
community June 3 — 5, 2011/ issue 27
RM6.5bil water bailout criticised
Learning disabiLities not a barrier
p 6 p 12 & 13
reLigious Leaders: stand united
p 10
Premium relief for landowners
By Gan Pei Ling
sHaH aLaM: Owners of leasehold properties, holders of Temporary Occupation of Land (TOL) licences and those who have just converted the status of their land are set to benefit from the state government's latest scheme.
In a bid to lighten the financial burden of such landowners, Selan-gor has introduced the Private Residential Ownership Scheme for property owners to pay RM1,000 first to renew their leases instead of the normal hefty premiums.
The balance of the premium, however, will have to be paid up when the properties are sold or transferred at a later date. Property transfers resulting from inherit-ances are also exempted from pay-ing the balance of premiums if they choose to keep the properties.
The scheme is limited to residen-tial properties.
“Starting June 1, they no longer need to pay full premiums to secure land titles or extend their leases,” Menteri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibra-him said after chairing an executive council meeting on Wednesday.
Owners of expiring leasehold properties, such as those in Petaling Jaya Old Town or Sections 1, 2, 3 and 4, now need to pay RM1,000 first to extend their leases instead of the RM100,000 premium to keep their properties.
Owners who have just converted the status of their properties from agricultural to residential will also benefit from this arrangement.
For TOL licence holders, the owners can now obtain leasehold status instead of yearly renewals.
Owners of 60-year leases are also set to benefit as the scheme will al-low them to convert the leases to 99 years.
The scheme, however, does not affect owners of properties where the status is still in limbo, such as
squatters.“We’ve identified those who
have been living on TOL land for more than 10 years. They will re-ceive land titles with certain condi-tions,” Khalid said.
He added that due to rising land prices in Selangor, the premium to secure a land title could come up to RM10,000 or more.
“Under the scheme, they only need to pay RM1,000 to get the land title. When they sell the house [in future], they can use the money from the sale to pay the remaining premium,” he said.
Khalid said the scheme is part the state’s initiative to ease the pro-cess of granting land titles to deserv-ing applicants as well as to reduce the people’s financial burden.
As for leasehold property own-ers, Khalid said residents in older townships like Petaling Jaya who want to extend their expiring leases to 99 years will benefit from the scheme.
“The premium to extend the lease is a quarter of the property’s market price. For a 10,000 sq ft house, the premium may come up to RM250,000.
“This scheme allows them to pay RM1,000 and continue living there until they sell it,” said Khalid.
He said the scheme aims to en-courage people to retain ownership of their leases.
He added that the scheme is a result of the research by land and district offices and the state secre-tary’s office.
The scheme will also benefit people who are living on non-resi-dential lands as they will be allowed to change their status by paying just RM1,000.
Khalid said this would benefit many of the villages who are staying on lands designated for agricultural use.
“We want to help them legalise their land status,” he said.
Meanwhile, for those who can afford to pay their premium in full within six months of application, the state will grant them a 30% discount of their premium.
Khalid said the state is also set-ting up an integrated information centre to would allow landowners to check and update their status or other related land matters.
Owners of leasehold properties in older parts of Petaling Jaya are set to benefit from the new state scheme on premiums.
2 june 3 — 5, 2011
news
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EDITORIALCHIEF EDITOR KL Chan
COMMUNITY EDITOR Neville SpykermanWRITERS Tang Hui Koon, Chong Loo Wah, Gan Pei Ling,
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Shamsuddin was shocked when he heard the news.
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By Gan Pei Ling
SHAH ALAM: Residents from three New Villages will go to the polls next month to elect their leaders for the first time.
The move to allow Chinese villagers to select their own Village Security and Develop-ment Committee ( JKKK) chiefs is the first step towards restoring local government elec-tions.
“Once elected, the state will formally ap-point them [as JKKK chiefs],” said executive councillor Ean Yong Hian Wah in an exclusive interview with Selangor Times yesterday.
The first election will kick off in Jenjarom
with nomination day on July 24 and polls on July 31, followed by Pulau Ketam and Pan-damaran.
Nomination day is set for July 31 and vot-ing day on Aug 7 in Pulau Ketam while Pan-damaran’s nomination day will be on Aug 7 and polls on Aug 14.
Ean Yong, whose portfolio includes New Villages, said the election dates are set on Sundays for voters’ convenience. All candi-dates must be above 21 years of age and must stay at the villages for at least two years.
“This is to ensure that the candidates are familiar with local issues which will help them serve the villagers more effectively,” said
Ean Yong.He said eligible candidates would have to
pay a RM500 deposit and submit their nomination forms between 9am and 10am on nomination day. Candidates must contest in their personal capacity and not under any political party banner.
Ean Yong added that villagers can cast their votes between 8am and 4pm. All registered voters included in the latest electoral roll as of Oct 27 last year are eligible to vote.
Jenjarom’s polling stations will be at its community and multipurpose halls, Pulau Ketam at its community hall on the main street and Pandamaran at the JKKK centre
and sports complex.Ean Yong said the state has allocated
RM60,000 for each election.As the Election Commission has refused
to help, local councils and district offices will run the elections.
If the polls are successfully carried out in the three pioneering villages, the model may be used to elect other JKKK chiefs in Selan-gor.
Local government elections in Malaysia were suspended in 1964 after the Indonesia-Malaysia confrontation, and the state’s move to have them restored has been rejected by both Putrajaya and Election Commission.
By Alvin Yap
SHAH ALAM: Residents with leasehold titles, which are fast expiring, are welcoming the RM1,000 policy that allows them to extend their leases for another 99 years.
Michael Muniandy was among those who were overjoyed to hear the news announced on Wednesday.
“It’s very good news indeed, especially for retirees like me,” said the former engineer with the Land and Mines Department.
The 78-year-old pensioner had just 20 years left on his lease for his home in one of PJ’s oldest neigbourhoods, Section 1, Jalan Carey.
He pointed out that the RM1,000 premium would be less of a financial burden on his savings and pension.
Similarly, music teacher Raymond Pragasam, 46, said the move would encourage more home ownership as prospective housebuyers have balked at having to pay hefty premiums to extend the leases.
“Our house in Section 4 has 55 years remaining [on our lease], but our neighbours around us have less than 10 years. This is good news for them,” Raymond said when met at Taman Petaling here.
Former public school teacher Ng Sik Poon, 81, said the RM1,000 amount was within the means of every resident in
Village polls kick off next month
Welcome relief for leasehold owners
Petaling Jaya.“Even if you are short of money, you would borrow
the amount to secure the lease,” he said.He pointed out that the move by the state govern-
ment would assist middle-income families.Ng added that he expects a “rush” at the Land
Office as ratepayers would clamour to extend their leases.
“Too bad I just extended my lease a few years ago, and I paid quite a hefty sum based on the land size,” he said, who could not recall the amount offhand.
Pragas Marimuthu admits that he is lucky to stay on freehold land in Puchong. Nevertheless, he said it was very good news for leasehold landowners in Selangor.
The 50-year-old businessperson said the move would encourage citizens to own residential prop-erty.
“A lot of prospective housebuyers put off buying property around the Old Town and New Town hous-ing area,” said Pragas.
He pointed out that when it came to the renewal of leases, buyers would be saddled with large amounts.
Pragas added that the unprecedented ini-tiative showed that the government was “car-ing” towards the middle-income group.
Siti Hanim Mohd Nasir, 38, said the an-nouncement was “very good news” as her home on Jalan 3/60 here has only nine years remaining.
According to her land title documents, the lease is at RM12.50 per sq ft, and the total area of her bungalow lot is around 3,400sq ft.
“I’d have to pay at least RM40,000 to renew the lease,” she said.
Section 3 residents association (RA) head Shamsuddin Hassansaid he was “shocked” upon receiving the news from Bukit Gasing assemblyperson Edward Lee.
“When I told my residents this morning, they told me to stop joking,” he said when met at the RA office here in Section 3, Old Town.
The 61-year-old retiree said the residents had bought all the daily newspapers in order to con-firm the announcement.
He pointed out that many of the houses, some of them the oldest here in Petaling Jaya, have their leases expiring within 10 years.
Shamsuddin said it would have cost some of the residents between RM40,000 and RM50,000 to renew their leases.
“We are not earning very much, and many of us are pensioners,” he pointed out.
He said he would be accompanying the residents as soon as possible to the Land Office to take full use of the state’s initiative.
“On behalf of the residents here in Section 3, I want to say thank you very much to the state admin-istration,” he concluded.
Pragas (top) said more citizens will want to own residential property while Siti Hanim said she can now renew her lease.
SELANGOR TIMES ⁄ June 3 – 5, 2011 ⁄ 3
4 june 3 — 5, 2011
news
Transformers live
Fans of the movie Transformers are in for a treat as a meet-and-greet session with its characters will be held during the school holidays. Popular Autobots and Decepticons like Optimus Prime, Bumblebee, Ironhide, Sideswipe and many more will appear at The Curve in Mutiara Damansara. The sessions will be from noon to 1pm on Sunday (June 5) and from 2pm to 5pm on June 10. They will be held ahead of the screening of Transformers: Dark of the Moon. A Transformers Speed challenge will be held with special edition Autobots to be given out as prizes. For details, call The Curve customer care at 03-77106868 or visit www.thecurve.com.my.
Pet-grooming talk A pet-grooming talk will be held on June 12 from 8.30am to noon. Yuri Professional Grooming Training Centre founder Yuri Lim will speak about household pet cleanliness besides educating the public on basic grooming skills. The talk will be held at Teratai assemblyperson Jenice Lee’s service centre on Jalan Bunga Tanjung 10, Ampang. Admission fee is RM20. All proceeds will go to non-governmental organisations. For more information, call 012-2669639. Fashion design show
The Textile and Fashion Design Diploma Show 2011 featuring selected artworks by students of the Malaysian Institute of Art (MIA) will be held from June 11 to July 7 at the MIA Art Gallery on Jalan Bandar 11 in Taman Melawati. The gallery is open from Mondays to Fridays from 11am to 5pm and on Saturdays from 11am to 1pm. Admission is free. For more details, call MIA at 03-41088100 or visit www.mia.edu.my.
Cyberjaya cycling race
The first Cyberjaya Green Ride will traverse the city’s streets with 10 different categories for cyclists of all ages on June 18 from 8am to 6pm. More than RM14,000 worth of prizes are up for grabs. The race will start at the Kelab Komuniti Taman Tasik Cyberjaya, off Persiaran Semarak Api. For more information, call Elli at 017-3346469 or Nuraihana at 012-6794565. Email them at [email protected] and [email protected]. Hats off to record seekers
An attempt to break a record in the Malaysia Book of Records by having the largest number of people to walk in fancy hats will he held on June 11. The attempt, organised by the Junior Chamber International Petaling Jaya (JCI PJ), will be held from 4pm to 11pm at I-City, Shah Alam. A registration fee of RM25 will go to the JCI PJ leukemia fund. Register at [email protected] or call 019-3197383 or 012-3995495. USJ Family Day
The second USJ Family Day will be held on June 11 from 5pm to 10pm at the Subang Jaya Municipal Council (MPSJ) field in USJ 5. The event is expected to attract about 100,000 residents from USJ2 to USJ15. The attractions include goodie bags for the first 500 visitors. There will also be a lucky draw every hour with laptops and mobile phones up for grabs. Remember to register before 7pm to be eligible for the lucky draw! Dumpling-making contest
A “bak chang”, or dumpling-making, competition and a children’s colouring contest will be held at the Bukit Tinggi 2 Burger King (Jakes Stations) tomorrow (June 4). The competitions will run from 10am to 12.30pm. Food will be served. For registration, call 03-33232122, 012-2113003 or 012-2339544. Video-shooting workshop
A video-shooting-technique workshop will be held on June 17, 18 and 19 at Klang MP Charles Santiago’s office. Organised by his office in collaboration with Malaysiakini, the workshop will be held from 10am to 5pm. Registration fee is RM100 for all three days. For details, call Revathy at 03-33232122.
port klang: A new community li-brary has been launched in the Seri Perantau flats here to make it easier for residents to start reading.
The library was launched by Dr Halimah Ali together with Selangor Public Library Corporation (PPAS) director Mastura Mo-hammad on Tuesday.
“The theme of the library is ‘Your Li-brary is Your Second Home’, and I want the residents to take advantage of the library which is in such close vicinity to their units,” said Halimah.
The executive councillor for education hopes the youths and children will use the library and its facilities to conduct research or to complete their schoolwork.
She said the library is part of the measures
SHaH alaM: The Sultan of Selan-gor’s mother, Raja Saidatul Ihsan Teng-ku Badar Shah, was laid to rest at the Shah Alam Royal Mausoleum at 3pm on Tuesday.
The first wife and cousin of the late Sultan of Selangor, Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah, died at the age of 88
on Tuesday at the Ampang Puteri Hos-pital.
Her body was then taken to Istana Alam Shah in Klang for mourners to pay their last respects.
Among those who paid their respects were Menteri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibra-him, state executive councillors and
political leaders.Special prayers were also held at the
newly opened Masjid Istana Sultan Alam Shah.
Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah has requested for flags in the state to be flown at half-mast and members of the Selan-gor royalty to mourn for a week.
By Brenda Ch’ng
klang: Discrepancies in the awarding of contracts worth RM1.8 million have led the municipal coun-cil to order an internal audit on its Engineering Department.
Between January and April this year, more then 90 projects costing RM20,000 or less each were awarded to Klang Municipal Council (MPK) contractors for drainage and road repairs without approval.
“I was shocked when I saw that RM1.8 million was used for projects which I didn’t even know about in the past four months,” said council-
lor Lim Lip Suan.The MPK’s finance oversight
committee member discovered dis-crepancies from internal records that showed the money had been spent between January and April.
Lim said all proposals for small projects must be disclosed to the re-spective councillors.
However, Lim and his fellow-councillor’s efforts to get the depart-ment to justify their expenses have failed because officials say the ex-penditure is “confidential”.
“I have the right to see what pro-jects have been approved, but I can’t believe we were all turned down,”
said Lim.On Tuesday, Lim proposed that
internal auditors check on the depart-ment’s expenditure and records of the council’s full board meeting.
The move was approved unani-mously, and the results of the report will be tabled at the full board upon completion of the audit.
Lim pointed out that the council-lors were unhappy that the huge amount was spent by the engineering department without consulting them.
He added that the huge expendi-ture could result in more urgent pro-jects in Klang having to be put on hold due to budget constraints.
Audit ordered on irregular spending
Community library for flats
Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin, Sultan Sharafud-din Idris Shah and Raja Muda Perak Dr Nazrin Shah paying their last respects to the mother of the Sultan of Selangor, Raja Saidatul Ihsan Tengku Badar Shah, on Tuesday.
Sultan’s mother laid to rest
the state is taking to promote Selangor as an educational and informative hub.
Halimah pointed out that knowl-edge is an asset that must be acquired by youths if they aspire to become better leaders of tomorrow.
The library is fully equipped with
free wi-fi services, computers, a reading room, and educational activity sets for children.
The community library is set up right beside the Generasi Idaman Sel-angor centre, which is set up to handle social problems among youths.
Dr Halimah (third from right) with residents at the opening of the library.
EvEnts
5JUNE 3 — 5, 2011
NEWS
By Basil Foo
PUCHONG: Frequent burglaries are caus-ing alarm among Taman Puchong Utama Phase 3 residents who want an increased po-lice presence.
“Our area has had one to two break-ins a month since late last year. We are also afraid of being harmed as the robbers carry parangs,” said T Selvam.
The 47-year-old, who has been living in the housing estate for the past five years, had his home broken into on Dec 27.
He lost jewellery, a television set, cameras, and other portable electronic devices during the home invasion by four men who climbed over the walls of his home.
“We found footprints on the walls outside my house where they climbed in. They left two parangs on my bed. I sent them to the police station, but the fingerprints couldn’t be iden-tified,” he said.
He has since installed metal spikes on the top of his walls to prevent further intrusion into his home.
Selvam blamed the increase in crime to the many entrances into the residential area, with several main roads and small paths leading from a neighbouring industrial park.
Reverend Rani Phillip, who manages a
home for underprivileged, abused, and or-phaned children in the area, also expressed worry at the recent crime spree.
“We sometimes see fully tinted cars with three or four men driving slowly around the area as if looking for potential targets,” said the home supervisor.
She said while the home has not been robbed, it was risky for her children to walk to the nearby school or to an adjacent field for activities.
Manager M Devaraj had his house broken into on May 2, when four men with parangs entered his home and tied up his wife and children.
“I rushed home after receiving a call that my house has been robbed at about 10pm. I lost laptops, cash, and jewellery,” said the 54-year-old.
He said they seldom see police patrol cars in the area, and hoped the relevant authorities would look into the matter quickly to avoid further crime.
Surau chairperson Sulaiman Yusof also aired his complaints about cars parked along roads in the residential area that have been stolen or had their tyres removed.
“There was a fencing previously set up to block the access of small walkways leading from the nearby industrial area. It has since
been cut down by unknown individuals with wire cutters,” he said.
Puchong MP Gobind Singh Deo, who visited the area last Saturday, suggested that residents hold a dialogue with the police and local council.
“We will set a date for a Saturday evening or night after the school holidays so that most of the residents here will be able to make it,” he said.
He reassured residents that he would con-tact the authorities to attend the meeting, which he hoped would address the problem.
Crime woes in Puchong
Selvam showing Gobind the spot where he suspects the robbers climbed in.
By Brenda Ch’ng
PETALING JAYA: Tiger Beer and Sin Chew Daily are aiming to break the RM200 million mark in their 18th year of fundraising with the Chinese Education Charity Concert (CECC).
CECC has so far successfully raised more than RM189 million through charity con-certs held in schools across Malaysia.
This partnership between Tiger Beer and Sin Chew Daily was initiated in 1994 to fi-nancially help with the development of Chinese schools.
“All proceeds helped fund additional class-rooms, computer labs and indoor sports halls for schools,” said Yap Swee Leng, marketing director of Guinness Anchor Berhad.
Yap said that over the years, the funds raised have benefited 361Chinese primary and 80 Chinese secondary schools through-out the country.
The fundraiser concerts are done at various schools, and tickets are sold by respective schools directly to the community.
Ticket prices vary from school to school
and are regulated by their principals.The cost of organising, getting the artists
and managing publicity are fully sponsored by Tiger Beer.
Sin Chew Daily is the event’s official media partner.
These concerts showcase performances by local budding artists and are held on weekends.
Yap said the charity concerts also serve as a platform for local artists to showcase their talents and kickstart their musical careers.
Since the charity concerts are done on a wide scale across the country, it is broken up into four phases.
The first phase for 2011 was launched on May 18 by Minister of Housing and Local Government Datuk Wira Chor Chee Heung. The second phase will be launched this month.
These two phases will showcase 11 differ-ent concert performances in 11 different schools.
The third and fourth phases will begin in October and November with a total of 20 more performances in other schools.
Education fund aims to top RM200 million
By Gan Pei Ling
SUBANG JAYA: Residents and members of the SS17 fire station came together in good spirits to clean and repaint fire hydrants in USJ 2 last Saturday morning.
Several residents also signed up on the spot to “adopt” the fire hydrants in front of their houses.
“The residents just need to make sure the hydrants are in good con-dition and alert us if they are faulty,” said SS17 fire station chief Deputy Superintendent Khairi Daud.
Khairi, who was transferred from Alor Gajah to Subang Jaya recently, said it is crucial to ensure that the fire hydrants are in working condi-tion to prevent any delay in the event of a fire.
“Timing is everything in fire-fighting,” said Khairi, adding that sometimes unaware residents may plant trees or flowers next to a hydrant, blocking firefighters’ ac-cess to it.
He said there are 108 fire hydrants in USJ 2 and over 5,000 in Subang Jaya.
The Fire and Rescue Department (Bomba) aims to service all fire hydrants in Subang Jaya by the end of the year.
Last Saturday’s event was jointly organ-ised by the SS17 fire station and Rukun Tetangga USJ 2 and USJ 6, and was launched by local councillor R Rajiv.
Around 15 students from SMK Seaf-
ield’s Fire and Rescue Cadets volunteered and helped the residents and Bomba members.
The event was sponsored by the Subang Jaya Municipal Council and Subang Av-enue.
Other community groups interested in organising similar joint initiatives with the Bomba are welcome to contact the SS17 fire station at 03-56349444.
Community helps Bomba give hydrants a makeover
USJ 2 resident Ramli Chik adopts the fire hydrant in front of his house and submits the form to a firefighter.
(From left) Koo Cheng, executive director of Sin Chew Media Corporation Berhad, Chor and Yap.
6 June 3 — 5, 2011
News
From left: Telok Datok assemblyperson Philip Tan and Dr Xavier Jayakumar officiating the Caring Government housing scheme in Kampung Bukit Perah in Banting last Friday.
RM6.5b water bailout criticisedBy Gan Pei Ling SHAH ALAM: Several parties have criticised the federal government’s move to bail out the four troubled water companies in Selangor.
“If this is not a bailout, what is it?” As-sociation of Water and Energy Research Malaysia (Awer) president S Piarapakaran asked.
Putrajaya has offered RM6.5 billion to take over the water concessionaires’ down-graded bonds, but Energy, Green Technol-ogy and Water Minister Datuk Seri Peter Chin denied it was a bailout.
Piarapakaran pointed out that the conces-sionaires are not required to relinquish their stakes despite defaulting on their bonds.
“[We understand that the bailout is being done to] prevent deterioration of market confidence, but the concession agreement should be made null and void at the end of the deal,” said the engineer.
He said Putrajaya should have seized the opportunity to take control of the four com-panies and work together with Selangor to complete the state’s water-restructuring ex-ercise that has been in a deadlock since 2008.
The four troubled concessionaires are water distribution company Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor (Syabas) and water treatment companies Puncak Niaga, Syarikat Pengelu-aran Air Sungai Selangor (Splash) and Kon-sortium Abass.
Piarapakaran also questioned the federal government’s move to set up a new special
purpose vehicle called Acqua SPV Bhd to take over the bonds when Pengurusan Aset Air Bhd (PAAB) could have done so itself.
“[This] will incur additional costs unnec-essarily,” said Piarapakaran.
Meanwhile, Selangor Water Review Panel member Tony Pua said the RM6.5 billion offer is 73% higher than the bonds’ market value, describing it as “outrageous and an abuse of taxpayers’ money”.
He urged the federal government to be transparent about the bailout.
Pua said the bailout effectively killed off the Selangor government’s remaining hope of striking a deal to take over these compa-nies.
Selangor had made a third offer to take over these companies and their debts at
RM6.3 billion.“[Had] no bailout been offered, the com-
panies would have no choice but to negotiate the terms of restructuring with Selangor or other parties which have offered to acquire their businesses and assets,” he said in a state-ment on May 28.
Pua said there is no longer any urgency for the companies to agree to any form of re-structuring as they are relieved of their cash flow problems, adding that they now have the upper hand at the negotiating table.
“[This] is clearly a loss for the people of Selangor, for they have lost an opportunity for the privatised water industry to be re-structured to ensure quality water is pro-vided at the lowest possible prices,” said the member of Parliament.
Dr Xavier handing over a mock key to a resident during the handing over ceremony.
By Brenda Ch’ng KLANG: The municipality has earmarked 20 trees, some as old as 70 years, in the Royal Town which will be preserved and protected.
These “herita g e tre es”, worth an estimated RM5 mil-lion, will soon be gazetted by the Klang Municipal Council (MPK).
“These trees are historical landmarks and should be saved,” said MPK deputy pres-ident Mohd Ikhsan Mukri, who added that he wanted to see a greener town.
The move to gazette the trees was tabled by MPK’s Parks and Recreational Department during the council’s full board meeting on Tuesday.
The motion was unani-mously approved.
Mohd Ikhsan added that he would not be surprised if there are many more trees that are older and are worth pro-tecting.
According to Mohd Ikhsan, the 20 heritage trees are lo-cated in Taman Bandar Di-Raja Klang (12), MPK (5) and Taman Seratus (3).
They are valued by MPK’s Tree Doctors at between RM440,000 and RM200,000 based on spe-cies, uniqueness, physique and age.
A 70-year-old rain tree in Taman Bandar DiR aja Klang has been valued at RM440,000.
MPK identifies heritage trees to be preserved
By Alvin Yap KLANG: Six Orang Asli families at Kampung Bukit Perah in Banting received keys to their new homes under the Caring Government housing scheme.
State executive councillor Dr Xavier Jayakumar, who handed over the keys, later went on a walking tour of the housing scheme.
The houses built on Orang Asli reserve land cost RM30,000 per unit and was paid for by state gov-ernment-linked companies.
Dr Xavier, who holds the caring government position, was accompanied by Kuala Langat Land Officer Datuk Asmawi Kasbi, assemblyperson for Sikangjang Dr Ahmad Yunus Hairi, and Telok Da-tok assemblyperson Philip Tan Chong Swee.
They were also accompanied by officers from the state civil service.
Orang Asli families get keys to new homes
7JUNE 3 — 5, 2011
NEWS
By Brenda Ch’ng
KLANG: The spiralling costs of living, com-pounded by an increase in electricity tariffs from Wednesday, have led the Klang Member of Parliament to cynically describe the month as “Super June”.
“Today, June 1, is also known as Super June because everything is increasing except wages. How is that even acceptable in today’s day and age?” asked Charles Santiago.
Electricity prices have risen at an average of 7.1% this month.
Santiago is urging both the state and federal governments to work with hypermarkets and subsidise daily essentials.
He also wants direct cash handouts or vouchers to be given directly to the poor
Santiago also reiterated his earlier call to Putra-jaya to implement a minimum wage policy of RM1,500 to RM,2000 without further delay.
“Something has to be done now. The people can’t wait any longer, especially with the expected rise in inflation [this month],” he said.
He said apart from power tariffs, the price of natural gas would also rise by RM3 per million metric BTU every six months until it reaches the market level.
In addition, the Association of Malaysian Hauliers will raise its haulage tariff guidelines by 20%.
These tariff hikes will not help trim the growing subsidy bill and reduce the budget deficit as an-
nounced by the government, but instead add more burden on the peo-ple, Santiago said.
He pointed out that the billions of ringgit which Putrajaya subsi-dies Independent Power Producers (IPPs) would re-sult in 5.49 mil-l ion households paying more once suppliers and food manufacturers pass on the burden of the increased tariffs to the public.
“Food prices [in the country] have gone up more than twice the rate of global food prices in the first four months of 2011,” said Santiago.
He said there was an increase of 40-60% in food prices between September 2010 and April this year.
However, while prices have gone up, wages have stagnated for the past decade, with only an increase of 2.6% between 2000 and 2010.
Santiago said daily necessities are expected to have a drastic increase of 70-80%.
“This is not fair because the government should be subsidising the public, not the IPPs and [Sel-angor] water bond holders,” said Santiago.
“This increase [in prices] will continue to push thousands into poverty,” he said.
Of inflation, power tariffs and ‘Super June’
Charles Santiago
Tariff hikes unfair to Malaysians
THE federal government’s decision to pass the burden of the increased gas prices from Tenaga Nasional Bhd and Independent Power Producers (IPPs) to Malaysian consumers is an abdication of its responsibility to the people.
The cause of the increased in the tariff, which is about 7% higher from this month and increased every six months until 2015, is due to the gov-ernment’s unwillingness to review the grossly unfair contracts entered into by the government with the IPPs, and the manifestly improper long-term gas supply agreements between Petronas and the IPPs.
The unfair power purchase agree-ments require TNB to purchase all electricity produced by the IPPs, regard-less of TNB’s requirements, and at a cost that is more expensive than the power produced by TNB itself.
As a result, TNB pays the IPPs a capacity charge, which is payment for power produced by the IPPs and not required by TNB. There is a 40% excess capacity, for which TNB has been paying capacity charges to the IPPs since 1993.
Under the gas supply agreements, the IPPs purchased gas from Petronas at the price of RM6.40 per Million Metric British Thermal unit (MMBtu), when the production cost was RM15 per MMBtu. This was reviewed in 2009 to
RM10.70 per MMBtu. It is now in-creased by RM3 to RM13.70 per MMBtu.
The government has agreed with TNB and the power companies for the increased cost of gas to be passed through to the consumers.
By reason of the grossly unfair power purchase agreements and the highly improper use of Petronas to sell its gas production below cost to the IPPs, the IPPs have been making super profits since 1993.
In 2008, the Barisan Nasional government backed down from re-viewing these unfair contracts, and also surrendered to the IPPs’ demand by not proceeding with the imposi-tion of windfall taxes in 2008.
In backing down from the review of the unfair contracts and not pro-ceeding with the windfall tax, the Barisan Nasional government has therefore chosen to protect the prof-its of the IPPs over the people.
I call upon the government to im-mediately declassify and make public the power purchase agreements and the gas supply agreements. The pub-lic has a right to know the terms of these agreements and to take action to correct the wrongs.
William LeongMember of Parliament Selayang
8 June 3 — 5, 2011
News
Breaking racial barriers through football
By Basil Foo
SUBANG JAYA: A football league, organised by parents wanting to spend quality time with their children, is success-fully breaking racial barriers on and off the pitch.
“This is a brilliant experience in bringing together children and their parents to mingle in a multiracial environment,” said Desmond Teh, who coaches Team Rhino, one of 24 teams.
Teh said the Subang Jaya Community Youth Football League was a good experience for his two sons, aged 10 and 13 years old.
He described the tournament, which has been held for the past 11 years, as the best reflection of Ma-laysia and the kind of environment that Teh himself grew up in.
“If you talk about unity, this is where it begins,” said the 47-year-old general manager, who took over coaching duties of his team at the start of this year.
“When this idea was mooted, we wanted to do something for the kids, to spend time with them over the weekend,” expla ined the league’s coordinator, Dr Mohd Nazir Abu Bakar.
He said the tournament had moved beyond football into an en-deavour that built community spirit among participants.
Parents and children from vari-ous races and localities have taken part in the tournament over the years, with many having volunteered to help out.
Apart from six parents who are
in the committee, there are others who help with refereeing, photog-raphy, becoming team managers and other responsibilities, Mohd Nazir said.
The children’s football divisions are made up of the Junior League (Under 8), Major League (Under
10), Senior League (Under 12) and Premier League (Under 14).
This year’s tournament saw the biggest turnout in its history, with 265 children from 24 football teams playing in four divisions.
Mohd Nazir, whose 13-year-old son has been playing in the tourna-
on May 28 and 29, and culminated in the finals last Sunday, ending this year’s tournament season which began in January.
Puchong MP Gobind Singh Deo, who attended the tournament on Saturday morning, said sports events like these were important to bring together various communities.
“Children have to be brought together at an early stage. The friends I had when I was young re-main my close friends to this day,” he said.
Khalid
New environment-friendly bins for KlangBy Brenda Ch’ng
KLANG: New metal rubbish bins that can be drilled directly into the ground will be used by the munici-pality to encourage the public to keep the town clean.
The Klang Municipal Council (MPK) said the new receptacles would replace the smart bins, which cost the council RM100,000 annually but were found to be ineffective because of its small size.
The new enviro bins, which are produced by MPK from 50% recycled metal, only cost RM90 each.
“Our aim is to provide [environ-mentally friendly] rubbish bins for
the public, and at the same time re-duce costs,” said Wan Mohd Sofian Wan Husain.
The MPK environment director said the annual budget for bins is now only RM25,000.
A total of 250 bins will be placed in busy areas in Klang Utara and Selatan, Bukit Tinggi and Bandar Baru Klang.
He said 90% of 100 shop owners like the huge bins, which are placed near their shops.
The bin’s large opening easily allows rubbish of all sizes to be thrown in.
The 10kg bin comes in three differ-ent colours – silver, blue and orange.
The enviro bin was launched at MPK’s full board meeting on Tuesday.
Distinguished Police competitionSHAH ALAM: The Distinguished Police-My Vision competition is being held to promote better rela-tions between the officers in blue and the public.
The public will stand a chance to win cash prizes by writing on their experiences with the police and nominating personnel.
“The competition is open to Shah Alam residents to write about their experiences or qualities that police personnel must have,” said Khalid Samad.
The Shah Alam MP said submis-sions should be in an essay format of not more than 1,500 words, and can either be based on real experi-ences or consist of fictional creative writing.
The essay entries, which can be in Bahasa Malaysia or English, will be judged based on writing style, storyline, and overall message.
“Participants can write as many
essays about [as many] different experiences as they want, as long as they submit their entries by July 31,” he said.
Khalid, who spoke during a press conference on June 1, said the stories should be of good conduct and exceptional treatment received by the participants.
“This is to counter recent nega-tive reports on police personnel with bad conduct with stories of those who did good jobs without acknowledgement,” he explained.
The prizes for both language categories include RM1,000 for first place, RM750 for second, and RM500 for third.
Those who have received good service from any Shah Alam police officer can also nominate him or her for the Distinguished Police Award.
“These nominations must be reports of true experiences of excel-
lent service by a police officer,” Khalid said.
In nominating their selected police officer, participants are al-lowed to write on different experi-ences in multiple reports.
Families of police personnel are not eligible to participate.
A RM2,500 cash prize comes with the award presented to the first-placed police officer, while the participant who submitted the re-port will receive RM500.
The second- and third-placed police officers will receive RM1,500 and RM1,000, while the two par-ticipants will receive RM350 and RM150 for their reports respec-tively.
Entry forms and other contest guidelines can be found at www.khalidsamad.com. Participants can also get more information by call-i n g 0 3 - 5 5 1 1 1 0 6 6 o r 0 3 -551198117.
ment for seven years, said the league was assisted by the local council and the developer for the area.
“The tournament is always held at the USJ 4 school field, which Sime Darby has renovated and the Subang Jaya Municipal Council is maintaining monthly,” said Mohd Nazir.
The knockout matches were held
Wan Mohd presenting the enviro bins.
One of the children’s football team tents.
Parents helping with refereeing during their children’s football tournament.
Petition over delayed Shah Alam hospitalBy Basil Foo
SHAH ALAM: Khalid Samad is launching a petition to get residents in this city to express their disap-pointment over the delay in the construction of the Shah Alam Hospital.
“Currently people seeking afford-able medical treatment have to travel to Klang,” said the Shah Alam Member of Parliament.
Khalid pointed out that there are no public hospitals in Shah Alam, a major inconvenience especially for residents who need emergency medical attention.
The project was halted in the middle of last year due to legal prob-lems.
Legal suits between the main contractor and its subcontractors
caused the project’s completion to be rescheduled to November last year, and again to this month.
The project was awarded to a company in 2007 via direct nego-tiations for RM482 million, and was slated for completion last August.
“Should the project face further delays again, the hospital might be completed only by the end of 2014,” said Khalid.
SELANGOR TIMES ⁄ JUNE 3 – 5,2010 ⁄ 9
news
By Chong Loo Wah
AMPANG: Developers who fail to monitor and maintain their hill slopes and flood miti-gation ponds here will face up to RM250,000 in fines.
The Ampang Jaya Municipal Council (MPAJ) said two warnings have already been is-sue to developers and land owners of risk-prone hills after heavy rains last month.
“We’ve identified and are focusing on five sensitive areas, [namely] Kampung Baru Cheras, Kampung Bukit Se-puteh, Kampung Ampang In-dah, Kampung Datuk Mutif and Kampung Kemensah,” said Datuk Mohammad Yacob.
The MPAJ president, speak-ing after the council’s full board meeting on Monday, said all five sites are located on agricul-tural land.
He said the council will be conducting a survey on the ar-
eas to ensure there are no land-slides or problems of soil ero-sion.
Mohammad Yacob said MPAJ has its own hill slope unit under the engineering depart-ment, which has been actively monitoring over 600 slopes within the municipality.
He said there are eight members in the unit, and the members work together with other local departments to supervise hill slopes and repair them swiftly if soil erosion is detected.
The local council received 35 landslide-related complaints l a s t m o n t h a n d s p e n t RM300,000 in repair costs.
According to Mohammad Yacob, the majority of slopes are private properties, with fewer than 10 belonging to the state.
As private hill slopes are re-ally the responsibility of their respective developers or land-owners, the local council ex-
pects them to cover the cost for repair.
Mohammad Yacob also said the Public Works Department has yet to inform MPAJ of 39 residential areas they have iden-tified that are located in land-slide-prone regions.
He said any development on Class 3 slopes must be approved by a state-level committee.
Since the implementation of Selangor’s hill slope develop-ment guidelines, four out of six development projects on Class 3 slopes have been approved, while the remaining two are still being reviewed.
Slopes can be divided into four classes: Class 1 for slopes below 15 degrees, Class 2 be-tween 15 and 25 degrees, Class 3 between 25 and 35, and Class 4 above 35 degrees.
Development is totally for-bidden on Class 4 slopes as they are classified as environmen-tally sensitive areas.
Hefty fine for apathetic developers
By Basil Foo
SHAH ALAM: The upcom-ing MTV World Stage con-cert, slated to be held at I-City on July 24, has been given the go-ahead, albeit with certain rules in place.
“Approvals for the concert were given early last year. To me, there is no problem with the event although they must observe some restrictions,” said
Khalid Ibrahim.The Menteri Besar, who
spoke to reporters after chair-ing the weekly state executive council meeting, said restric-tions include ending the event before midnight, observing decent dress codes and ensur-ing minimum noise levels.
The concert, organised by I-City, has been criticised by Pas lawmaker Khalid Samad for its potential to cause traf-fic congestion and noise pol-lution.
“The entrance roads at the technology park pass through housing areas which will in-convenience residents during large events,” said the Shah Alam Member of Parliament.
He said the area is not suit-ed for big events as it is an MSC (Multimedia Super Cor-
ridor) entity whose purpose is for technology expansion.
“If the concert is held [there], an overflow of traffic will occur from I-City all the way out to the Federal High-way,” he said.
Khalid, during a meeting at his office on Wednesday ( June 1), claimed that massive traffic jams were caused by previous events.
He said he would have no problem with the concert if it was held in stadiums that are equipped to handle big crowds.
“The concert should in-stead be held at larger venues like the Bukit Jalil stadium,” he said, adding that a petition would be launched against the concert.
When contacted, I-City did not respond.
Concert to go on as planned
By Brenda Ch’ng
SUBANG JAYA: Subang Jaya Municipal Council (MPSJ) officially welcomed the arrival of their new president Datuk Asmawi Kasbi on Wednesday June 1.
The newly appointed president paid a visit to all the departments in MPSJ on Wednesday to greet all staff, and at the same time familiarise himself with the building.
Asmawi has been working with the govern-ment for 30 years. The first half of that period was with the federal government, and the other half with the state government.
His latest position as the Kuala Langat Dis-trict Land officer ended in May after he was appointed president of MPSJ.
Asmawi had held the previous position since 2005.
Though he already clocked in for duty at 8am on Wednesday, he is still waiting for his swearing-in date to be announced.
Meanwhile, council acting president Ab-dullah Marjunid re-sumed his post as council deputy presi-dent as of June 1.
Marjunid stepped in to be acting president after former president Datuk Adnan Md Ikshan was promoted as the Federal Territories and Urban Wellbeing deputy secretary-general in February.
Asmawi will step in to replace Adnan, who had served as MPSJ president since 2006.
New MPSJ president clocks in
Datuk Asmawi Kasbi
Khalid Samad
10 June 3 — 5, 2011
news
By Gan Pei Ling
SHAH ALAM: Various religious leaders were united in their call for peace and respect among their fol-lowers of different faiths in a dinner gathering last Saturday night.
“We must reject any form of manipulation and exploitation of religion [by unscrupulous people]
for their own personal gains,” said Dr Mujahid Yusof Rawa, who is the president of Southeast Asian Inter-faith Networking for Peace.
The Parit Buntar Member of Parliament called on Malaysians to respect each other regardless of re-ligion, so that everyone can live to-gether peacefully.
The message comes at a time
when interfaith relations in this na-tion have been strained by several incidents in the past few years, in-cluding the 2009 cow-head protest and Molotov cocktails attack on churches over the use of the word “Allah” by non-Muslims.
Recently, a Malay daily also published unfounded allegations by two bloggers that certain par-
ties were plotting to change the religion of the federation from Islam to Christianity.
Mujahid’s call for peace was echoed by another Muslim aca-demic, Prof Sharil Harahap from Indonesia.
“Islam and other religions [have always] emphasised the impor-tance of [cultivating] peaceful in-terfaith relationships among vari-ous religious communities,” said Sharil at the dinner at Quality Hotel, Shah Alam.
The Al-Washliyah University rector also cited the city of Madinah during Prophet Mohamad’s time as a perfect model of harmonious liv-ing among different religious com-munities.
Malaysian Council of Churches general secretary Reverend Dr Her-men Shastri noted that some people are frightened to interact with people of different faiths as a result of the narrowing of space, and the wrong ideas of religions and stereotypes that are being perpetuated.
“Good interfaith relations can only be sustained if we are willing to look inward and accept every other person as a human being. Respect, love and treat each other with com-passion,” said Shastri.
He added that it is crucial to cre-ate safe spaces for inter-religious dialogues and for Malaysians to share their lives.
Malaysia Hindu Sangam Selan-gor chairperson Ganesh Babu Rao also called on Malaysians of diverse religious backgrounds to focus on the similarities among Malaysians, rather than the differences.
Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hindu, Sikh and Tao honorary secretary Prematilaka Serisena also reminded the 150 attendees to stand united as Malaysians regardless of faith.
Prematilaka cited memorable quotes from first Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman, who stated his wish to see a diverse yet united Malaysia.
The interfaith dinner was organ-ised by the Selangor government. Executive councillors Dr Halimah Ali, Dr Xavier Jayakumar and Ron-nie Liu were present.
Halimah concluded the night by expressing the state’s wish to strengthen inter-religious relation-ships among different communities in Selangor.
“ We hope Selangor can be-come a model for other states,” she said.
Religious leaders: Ignore provocation, stand united
Over 150 Christians, Buddhists, Hindus, Sikhs and Muslims attended the interfaith dinner organised by the state in Shah Alam last Saturday night.
By Alvin Yap
KLANG: A run for charity is being organised by wealth planners who are setting out to make a difference.
The Admiral 5A Charity Run 2011 will be held on July 31 at Stadium Padang Su-laiman here, and aims to raise funds for two organisations.
5A Lifestyle & Wealth Planner Sdn Bhd executive director Kho Chui Ing said pro-ceeds will be channelled to the Handicapped and Disabled Children’s Association of Klang, and Beautiful Gate Foundation for the Disabled.
The inaugural race will flag off at 11am and will see seven categories for the 10km and 6km runs, according to age and gender.
For the 10km run, the entry fee is RM30 and qualifying time is two hours. It is divided into the Men’s Open (13 to 19), Men’s Vet-eran (40 to 49), Men’s Senior Veteran (50 and
above), Women’s Open (13 to 34) and Women’s Veteran (35 and above).
The 6km run entry fee is RM25, and qualifying time is one hour. It is divided into Men’s Open (10 and above) and Women’s Open (10 and above).
Registration is open at all New Balance/Admiral outlets at 1Utama, Sunway Pyramid, Jusco Bukit Tinggi, Cheras Leisure Mall, IOI Mall, and The Gardens MidValley.
Participants can also register by calling SP Wong (012-3101379), SH Teh (017-3024882), Michelle Yong (017-5580212) or Jensen Chong (010- 2424254).
The closing date is 12 June or upon the registration of 2,500 entries.
Top 10 winners will receive a pewter trophy and other prizes. All runners who finish the race will also receive goody bags.
Also at the event was Stream Enterprise general manager Wei Chong Hwa, whose company is providing the t-shirts for the run.
Running for charity
5A Lifestyle & Wealth Planner executive directors Tan Yan Kok (left) and Kho (centre) announcing the run last Friday with Stream Enterprise general manager Wei.
By Basil Foo
SHAH ALAM: An avenue for voic-ing out suggestions, hopes and discon-tent has been made available with a “mega book” which is open for con-tributions by the general public.
Contributions to the book will be managed by the Selangor Public Li-brary Corporation (PPAS), which welcomes the public to submit their contributions in essay form.
“The involvement of all levels of society is encouraged, from commu-nity leaders, working professionals and labourers to government employ-ees,” said Dr Halimah Ali.
The state executive councillor, whose portfolio includes education, said this pro-gramme is part of an initiative to inculcate a culture of knowledge in society.
“Professional or amateur writers like novelists, freelance writers, columnists and bloggers are expected to be the main con-tributors to the book,” said Halimah.
This programme is meant to coincide with the second annual Selangor Knowl-edge Day organised by PPAS, which will be held at the Shah Alam Convention Centre (SACC) on June 26.
Other programmes include a state-wide 15-minute “reading break” planned from 10.45am to 11am on that day.
“All Selangor residents are encouraged to stop wherever they are and pick up a book to read on the appointed time and date,” she said.
Halimah, who spoke to the press at a
meeting last Thursday (May 26), said this was to inculcate a culture of reading in both the old and young.
On the same day, a writer’s forum will also be held, bringing together prominent authors and aspiring writers to develop the nation’s writing industry.
“We plan to tap the talent of young writ-ers, give them advice on the writing industry, and address the perception that writing is not a profitable career choice,” said Sarwani Abdul Jalal.
The PPAS Research and Information Services Department head said both aspects of writing and reading should be equally focused on to develop a generation of young intellectuals.
Running concurrently with these pro-grammes is the Selangor Book Fest, which will be held at the convention centre from June 24 to July 3.
An open book for public views
Dr Halimah Ali cutting the ribbon to launch the Selangor Book Fest. Looking on are PPAS director Mastura Muhamad and SACC chief executive officer Datuk Zulkifli Mohamad.
11JUNE 3 — 5, 2011
VIEWS
Dear Lord Bobo, what is a presumption of innocence? Is it truly applicable in
Malaysia? @christan_yh, via Twitter
THE presumption of in-nocence is a fundamental legal principle of criminal trials. This simply means that you are presumed innocent until you have been con-victed in a court of law.
So from the moment you are ar-rested by the police, right through your trial and until the court hands down a verdict of “guilty”, the law assumes you are innocent of the charge against you.
There are important repercus-sions to this. For one, the police are not supposed to treat you like a criminal, i.e. someone who has al-ready been found guilty of a crime in court. They should not handcuff you when you are brought to or are in court. Bail should be readily given and a lenient conditions set (unless the offence is so serious i.e. murder, terrorism).
Even if you held in a lockup, you should be given access to facilities, as much and as reasonably as pos-sible, as any normal citizen. To do otherwise would be to punish you before you have been found guilty. To do those things is to infringe against this presumption.
While the principle exists in Malaysia as it does in any civilized system of law, it suffers the same fate as many fine legal principles and government policies – a lack of ap-plication, borne out of a lack of appreciation of the principle itself.
A glaring example of this is when you see people accused of a crime being treated shabbily by the police – handcuffed, dressed in crappy clothing, held firmly by a big cop or surrounded by a few
police personnel, treated roughly and then held in lockup. Why should you be treated this way until and unless you
have been convicted of a crime?The presumption principle very
strongly applies in Malaysia – the presumption of guilt. You are treated as a criminal simply because you were caught by the police. Such attitudes often lead to abuse of suspects and witnesses.
It makes the job of a police inves-tigator a hell of a lot easier to pre-sume guilt; if a suspect is innocent, they’d have to start from square one and find someone else to bang up for the crime.
Like all legal principles, there are exceptions, and the Malaysian-style presumption of guilt is the same. If you’re a VIP or well-connected in-dividual, then you are exempted from the presumption of guilt.
If you’re unfortunate enough that news of the allegations against you have become known to the public (damn those nosy independent media folk!), you unfortunately will have to be charged, and the charges made public. But don’t worry, as there is an endless stream of scandal and hoopla in Bolehland, your mat-ter will soon fall off the radar, and the charges be wrapped up in old nasi lemak wax paper and not be heard of again.
Let’s not be too hard on the Ma-laysian authorities. They are at the forefront of investigative procedure, and are responsible for cutting-edge
innovations. It’s not their fault that their experiments sometimes go awry. The most recent innovation is the presumption of flight. Out of windows. They’re still working on that one.
Can I legally change my r e l i g i o n t o Je d i ? @junw3n, v ia Twit t er
GREETINGS Young Padawan,May the force be with you and
thank you for your timely and im-portant question. His Supreme Eminenceness is aware that the Jedi religion is growing in popularity worldwide, asserting itself through organisations such as the The Tem-ple of the Jedi Order and Temple of the Jedi Force.
In 2001, it was officially recog-nized as a religion in the United Kingdom. Ten years later, based on your question, it seems to now be making its way to Malaysian shores, buzzing into people’s skulls and spirits like the sound of a good ol’ lightsaber.
You obviously feel a strong need to drop your old boring beliefs and crank it up with one that is snazzier,
ambiguous and way cheaper than Scientology. That’s totally under-standable. Wandering around town in a full hooded robe with a lightsaber is way cool. You could hire a midget and dress him up as a boxy droid and call him 12FU to accompany you.
The Federal Constitution does not limit the types of religions to tether your faith to, unless it is some deviant Muslim sect as clas-sified by the government. Article 11(1) clearly states that you have the right to profess and practise your religion.
If you are a Muslim, though, propagating Islam is subject to
state law and federal law. That means the government can only regulate the religion of Islam, but not other religions. They are free to propagate their faith, unshackled and untouched by the sticky tenta-cles of some Jabatan or other crack taskforce.
Luckily for you (and would-be Jedis across the nation), there are no laws that limit what “other religions” are under the Federal Constitution. There are also no
court decisions that have inter-preted the phrase to pronounce its scope.
This suggests that you can leave your former religion and embrace the spirit of Jediism and the ways of Yoda. And if you do manage to start up the Temple of the Jedi in the Klang Valley somewhere, give us a call – we’d love to learn the Jedi mind trick.
Oh, hang on, you’re not a Muslim are you? We assumed from your Twitter profile picture that you’re not. If you are, then sorry, your road to Jedi-dom may be headed towards a dead end. You’re likely to be la-belled things like “traitor to your race/religion”.
You may even be accused by a certain prominent someone (he doesn’t seem qualified to be called a “politician” – which says a lot) of starting some sort of crusade, or wanting to change Malaysia into a Jedi nation, and you don’t wanna be messin’ with that dude. The Force against the Farce, that would be compelling.
Have a question for Lord Bobo? Call on His Supreme Eminence-ness by emailing [email protected], stating your full name, and a pseudonym (if you want), or tweeting your questions by mentioning @Lo-yarBurok and using the hashtag #asklordbobo. The first 100 questions published will receive monkey-riffic LoyarBurok mer-chandise courtesy of Selangor Times. What the hell are you waiting for ? Hear This, and Tremblingly Obey (although trembling is optional if you are somewhere very warm)! Libera-vi Animam Meam! I Have Freed My Spirit!
Presumptions and Malaysia, a Jedi nation?
Ask Lord Bobo is a weekly column by LoyarBurok (www.loyarburok.com) where all your profound, abstruse,
erudite, hermetic, recondite, sagacious, and other thesaurus-described queries are answered!
Of l a t e , w e ’ v e b e e n inundated with talk about withdrawal of subsidies
and subsequently the change in the price of sugar, RON95, gas, electricity, etc – some of which has happened, and some of which ( f o r w ha t e v e r e c o n o m i c o r political reason) has not.
And of course, all this talk has helped fuel the rakyat’s imagination that something big is rolling our way, in the form of the ever-loom-ing 13th General Election.
Again, much about the date of 13GE is speculative, something which only Datuk Seri Najib Razak is privy to – or at least, that’s what
we’ve been made to understand. Yet it seems impossible to talk about changes happening around us right now without recalling the days, weeks, and months preceding the 12th General Election, and the re-sultant mood or climate surround-ing public sentiment.
I still remember the heated talk of “ubah gaya hidup” back then – particularly vivid is my recollection of this YouTube video done by Youth4Change which parodied the BN administration’s sentiment that when the going gets tough, the rakyat gets changing (if petrol prices skyrocket, just change from a car to a motorbike, to a bicycle, to...??).
This time round, the BN admin-istration has been a bit more savvy in laying the ground for potential change in basic goods. For instance, when it came to sugar, they floated
the “healthy lifestyle” and “anti-diabetes” campaign. Very smart, which kind of reveals that there are sharp public relations operators walking the hallways of Putrajaya these days, and obviously sharper (or more sensitive) than during the times of the previous tenants of the fourth floor.
But what about the petrol and gas prices? Well, the “performance” of Umno Youth in fighting to stay the price of RON95 should suffice to lower any temporary negative public sentiments. “At least some-one spoke up for us” might be the perceived public’s response.
In any case, there are no changes in these prices for now at least, even if the total amount spent on subsi-dies balloons to somewhere closer towards the RM20 billion mark. The Najib administration is literally biting the bullet.
And so, going forward, are we going to expect no change at all? Of course not. These are sensitive times. The 13GE is near, so there shouldn’t be too much rocking of the rakyat’s boat. But would this discussion be different post-13GE? Maybe. But that’s specula-tive, and it all depends on who sits in Putrajaya then!
But an observation: any govern-ment operating in these “post-Arab spring” times are becoming more sensitive to rumblings of the populace. Perhaps, within the Malaysian context, the days of be-ing quiet and just accepting orders from above are over. Perhaps the popular mandate is not so obvi-ously within reach of any particu-lar group, and thus all who vie for it must appeal more exhaustively for the rakyat’s ears.
Perhaps these days, the people
are more easily roused, organised, galvanised, becoming a somewhat not-too-silent threat hanging by the bedsides of those who sleep with power.
Whatever the case may be, the days leading up to the 13GE will be very exciting indeed. We can already see the ratcheting-up of sentiments by all sides, which is a double-edged sword that must never be allowed to be raised above our heads.
In fact, we must do what we can to allay such negative sentiments and work together to maintain peace and calm in the country.
Come 13GE, no matter what kind of change takes place, no mat-ter who walks the hallways in Putra-jaya, we can only hope and pray that change happens democratically, under peaceful circumstances, and with our national dignity, sanctity, and sanity intact.
Times of changeKthxbai!Fahmi Fadzil
12 June 3 — 5, 2011InsIght
If you think your child has a learning disability, send him/her for clinical assessment and diagnosis. Clinical assessment and diagnosisGovernment hospitals such as Universiti Malaya Medical Centre, Selayang Hospital and Hospital Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia can run tests to determine if your child is learning-disabled. The Psychology departments at Sunway University and Help University College can also conduct tests. Basic assessmentThe following organisations can also carry out basic assessment of your child: Kiwanis Down Syndrome foundation, Nasom (National Autistic Society of Malaysia), Emmanuel Care Centre (primary school age) and Malaysian Care (below six years of age). The next step is to enrol your child in a learning disabilities intervention programme. Intervention programmesWhat is Early Intervention Programme (EIP)?• Early Intervention isaconcept thatpromoteshelpat the
earliest possible age so that learning potential can be fully developed.
• Itequipsparentstoteachandmanagetheirchildbetterandenable them to prepare for their child’s future.
• It helps prevent secondary complications such asbehavioural problems
Why EIP?• Earlyandintensiveinterventioncanhaveaprofoundimpact
onthequalityoflifeforbothchildrenatriskandtheirfamilies.• Withproperintervention,achildcanovercomeawiderange
of developmental, behavioural and learning problems.• EIPshouldbeginfrombirthtosixyearsold. EIP may be conducted once or twice a week for two to three hours.• Activities carried out may include individual work, group
work, computer access, physical activities, art and craft, roleplaying, story time, singing and music.
• Theprogrammeshouldseektostimulateallareasofachild’sdevelopment such as normal and fine motor skills, cognitive skills, social and communication skills, and behavioural management.
How to support the needs of a child who has learning disabilities
By Alvin Yap
Imagine having a world of ideas to share, communicate, and, most importantly, learn and explore. Now imagine your world falling apart when “neurological” disabilities or injuries make
it difficult for you to process information, to learn and to interact and communicate.
Learning disability, sometimes called learning disorder, does not involve physical handicaps like paralysis or blindness, but instead affects learning skills that others take for granted, such as writing, speech, reading and comprehension, and mathematical skills.
It is a disease caused by illness, disease or brain injury, and afflicts some 116,000 Malaysians.
The figure could be higher, as many have yet to be registered with the Welfare Department.
“Learning disability is caused by Down’s syndrome, autism, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and cerebral palsy. It is also caused by meningitis, or accidents that cause traumatic brain injuries,” said Wendy Yeong Moh Foong, a public relations manager at United Voice (UV), a learning disability advocacy group.
She pointed out that these disorders can hinder a person’s
She said there is no stigma associated with learning disability, but job prospects remain low due to misconceptions that these people are slow learners.
The graduate-turned-social worker said there are comprehensive programmes for these people to master basic to intermedi-ate skills.
She said UV’s Employment Project has
Learning disabiLities not a barrier
ability to learn, and prevent them from mastering simple skills or completing tasks on their own.
“People with learning disabilities have difficulties with spoken and written lan-guage, coordination, self-control or focus-ing attention on specific tasks,” she added.
This includes physical movements that may be erratic or uncoordinated.
As learning disability is caused by brain disorders, it cannot be cured. However, victims can alleviate their predicament if they are sent to support groups that provide intervention programmes and training.
Yeong pointed out that in the past, the public was fixated on Down’s syndrome and other disorders, rather than the overall big picture that learning disorders can be overcome with intervention, training and the right support.
Yeong said the public is more aware of learning disabilities now compared with 20 years ago, when having a child with Down’s syndrome or autism, or even talking about the subject, was considered taboo.
Yeong pointed out that there are now more special schools in the country that serve people with learning disabilities, and there are also charity and welfare clubs like Kiwanis Malaysia that conduct basic to intermediate learning courses.
Police in training at the Subang Jaya police headquarters.
Yeong’s long and winding road to self-confidence
WENDY Yeong joined disabled learning advocacy group United Voice (UV) in 2005, and was later offered a supervisor’s post at the Employment Project.
“I have a learning disability,” said Yeong, who thought she was a slow learner at an early age as she had trou-ble keeping up with her class.
“From [Standard Six] onwards, I was having problems understanding the teacher during lessons,” said Yeo-ng, 30, who hails from Perak.
She was frustrated with her inabil-ity to follow lessons, and began to hate school as a result.
Luckily, a teacher of her Form One class recognised that she was showing signs of learning disability, and rec-ommended to her parents that she be sent for further checks.
Yeong’s father sent her to a child psychologist, who confirmed that she had a learning disability. He told her she could only learn and keep up with lessons taught in a special class.
However, she was still going to a normal school, and later sat for her PMR examination, which she failed.
“I stayed at home after that, and never went back to school. I told my parents I did not want to study,” Yeong said.
She spent a few years at home, helping out with house chores, but
her parents advised her to go and look for a job.
“I told them I did not know how to find work, especially with my learning disability,” she said matter-of-factly.
In 2004, Yeong enrolled at the Day Training Centre for slow learners and St Paul’s Anglican Church in Petaling Jaya, for those with mild learning disabilities.
She was taught intermediate living and basic work skills by her trainer. Most importantly, the trainer got her a job at a packing line in a factory.
However, due to her disability, she quit and went to work at a college library.
Yeong pointed out that her former employers did not know how to deal with her condition.
“I quit that job and was looking for work when I came to [UV’s] office to sign up as a member,” she said.
She approached the owner of the restaurant below UV’s office here in-Section 17/12 to ask for work, but as chance would have it, another member overheard her conversation and told
Yeong to sign up for the Employment Project.
Yeong said working at the Employment Project pro-vided her with the responsi-bility and space to develop her leadership skills.
In 2009, she was offered a super visor’s post. She oversees the arts and crafts department, where some 26 members are employed to make greeting cards, fridge magnets and other items.
Yeong guides and gives advice to the members in a “quiet and teaching” man-ner whenever they struggle with a task.
“I’m happy working at [UV]. I think I [would not have obtained] this supervisor’s position in other compa-nies,” she said.
Yeong has also been invited as guest speaker at institutes of higher learning to talk about learning disability.
She is thankful for the support, love and care she receives from her family
and UV’s support group.
She pointed out that learning dis-ability programmes can assist those with such disability to overcome their handicaps.
Asked about her future plans, Yeong said she is content to stay on with her organisation.
“I am taking life one day at a time,” she said.
found jobs for its unemployed members.The project, which began in 2003 with
eight employees, now has 26 workers. They receive monthly salaries and annual bonuses apart from being covered by Socso, the social security organisation.
Part of the project involves the UV Art Gallery, which showcases some impressive paintings and sculptures.
Some of the paintings have been snapped up by art collectors, while others have been bought by corporations as part of their Cor-porate Social Responsibility programme.
Some paintings have fetched upward of RM3,000.
Yeong said other groups like Damansara Utama Methodist Church operate an in-tensive and comprehensive course that help people with learning disabilities to learn working skills.
However, there is still some way to go before these people can be fully absorbed into the workforce, said Yeong.
She pointed out that these people would only be fully accepted into the workforce if the government commits to opening voca-tional schools for them to learn trade skills.
“Among the skills we know people [with learning disabilities] have mastered are housekeeping, baking, sewing and hair-dressing,” said Yeong.
One of the reasons employers shy away from employing disabled people is the perception that they fare badly in interper-sonal relationships.
Yeong acknowledged that learning dis-abilities cause problems in communication, and those with the condition might have problems expressing themselves at work due to their limited vocabulary.
However, she pointing out that many attend speech and communication classes to improve themselves.
As such, sustainable employment is a concern to learning disability advocates
UV’s art gallery, which showcases members’ artwork.
Leading a normal,contented life
like UV and other groups.There is a higher rate of job turnovers
with employees with learning disabili-ties, and groups like UV are embarking on job coaching to ensure that they are employable.
Under this programme, a suitably qualified volunteer guides a disabled em-ployee through job tasks with after-work tutoring, teaching of interpersonal skills and counselling.
A report card from the employers is closely monitored by the job coach, who can then take necessary action to guide and teach the disabled person.
“It is done so that an employee with learning disabilities is suitable to the em-ployer’s specifications and stays employ-able at the workplace,” said Yeong.
She said people with learning disabili-
ties should assert their rights, but more importantly, must be given the oppor-tunity to lead and to join the workforce.
Yeong said that learning disabled groups must speak out for themselves with the concept of self-advocacy.
She said that given the right to be heard, learning disabled people can and will advocate their needs and demands.
“A person with mild learning dis-ability self-advocates by voicing [his or her] views. A person with severe learning disability self-advocates by [his or her]presence in a public meeting.”
She said our part would be to listen and to champion that right.
“At the end of the day, we must ac-knowledge their inherent right to be in and part of society, and we must see that it is upheld together,” Yeong said.
Learning disabiLities not a barrier
Police in training at the Subang Jaya police headquarters.
found jobs for its unemployed members.The project, which began in 2003 with
eight employees, now has 26 workers. They receive monthly salaries and annual bonuses apart from being covered by Socso, the social security organisation.
Part of the project involves the UV Art Gallery, which showcases some impressive paintings and sculptures.
Some of the paintings have been snapped up by art collectors, while others have been bought by corporations as part of their Cor-porate Social Responsibility programme.
Some paintings have fetched upward of RM3,000.
Yeong said other groups like Damansara Utama Methodist Church operate an in-tensive and comprehensive course that help people with learning disabilities to learn working skills.
However, there is still some way to go before these people can be fully absorbed into the workforce, said Yeong.
She pointed out that these people would only be fully accepted into the workforce if the government commits to opening voca-tional schools for them to learn trade skills.
“Among the skills we know people [with learning disabilities] have mastered are housekeeping, baking, sewing and hair-dressing,” said Yeong.
One of the reasons employers shy away from employing disabled people is the perception that they fare badly in interper-sonal relationships.
Yeong acknowledged that learning dis-abilities cause problems in communication, and those with the condition might have problems expressing themselves at work due to their limited vocabulary.
However, she pointing out that many attend speech and communication classes to improve themselves.
As such, sustainable employment is a concern to learning disability advocates
UV members working to
complete handicraft
items at the Employment
Project.
Fine ink and pencil drawing of the Petronas twin towers and Tanjung Karang pier.
Some of the members’ paintings.
IzzUDIn nordin, 23, shows up for work here at the Employment Project. His father sends him to United Voice’s office from their home in Kelana Jaya.
Others may not see Izzudin as “normal”, but he is like any other person. He likes his work, he has friends, and he ruminates over life.
He has Down’s syndrome, and the features that are associated with the condition are visible on his face.
“I like my work here. I get to do things that I like,” he said, as he went back to making greeting cards at his workstation.
Izzudin knows he is special, different from others. He said it does not bother him that others may think less of him because of his learning disabilities, and especially his Down’s syndrome.
“I have gained independence,” he pointed out.
He said he is thankful for life as he is healthy, and can work to support himself.
Izzudin gives a part of salary to his parents for groceries and other household expenses.
“I have shown to people that I can be independent,” he said.
The work is simple by “normal” people’s standards, but advocates at United Voice say it gives these people a “worthwhile” job that they might not otherwise be able to secure in other places.
The diligence Izzudin and his friends show at work reaps benefits when they are also paid yearly bonuses.
However, the best acclaim they get is when their clients visit the gift shop and are amazed at the quality of work that goes into the art and handicraft items.
The procurement manager of a
multinational company was visiting United Voice on the day Izzudin and others were being interviewed.
The manager said her company was thinking of getting a thousand pieces of greeting cards, and options for another few thousand pieces of refrigerator magnets.
“The quality of work is really fine,” the manager said.
Izzudin wondered what the fuss was about as people crowded around his workstation.
He excused himself and went back to his job.
“Okay, thank you, I have to get back to work now,” he said.
As he sat down, his features melted into a contented smile, happy that he and his colleagues were appreciated by others.
Izzudin: “I have shown to people that I can be independent.”
Yeong
14 JUNE 3 — 5, 2011
NEWS
By Basil Foo
PUCHONG: Construction of a new cre-matorium to cater to the needs of the growing township has started at Bandar Puchong Utama.
“There have been many requests for ad-ditional crematoriums in Selangor. The Subang Jaya Municipal Council (MPSJ) will be the fourth local council to have one,” said Ronnie Liu.
The state executive councillor, whose port-folio includes local government, said the new facility will help ease demands on other crema-toriums in Klang, Petaling Jaya and Shah Alam.
The crematorium is scheduled to be com-pleted in November, and will cost RM1.2 million, inclusive of construction and the purchase of an incinerator.
Liu said his office and MPSJ will allocate a further RM100,000 and RM300,000 re-spectively for a second incinerator.
Liu, who spoke at the project’s ground-breaking ceremony last Saturday, said it was necessary to buy another unit to keep the crematorium running in the event that the main incinerator broke down.
He said the payment for families to use the
facility would be set at a reasonable price, as the state was not looking to profit from the crematorium.
A fifth crematorium is slated to be built in Kajang, but not enough funds have been ac-cumulated for the project yet.
“The state is looking to add more cremato-riums to cut travel time for people from rural areas who need to use them,” said Dr Xavier Jeyakumar.
The state executive councillor, whose port-folio includes caring government, said those from poorer families wanting to use the facil-ity could apply to use it for free.
Putra Heights Buddhist Society president Chua Teck Seong thanked the authorities for this public service initiative.
“Puchong has grown massively over the years to reach about 600,000 people. Half of that is estimated to be Buddhist. This facility would be beneficial for many families,” said Chua.
Coalition of Malaysian Indian NGOs secretary G Gunaraj also thanked the state government and MPSJ for the project. Also present were officials from the Serdang Bud-dhist association and a Sikh temple.
Officiating the event were Puchong MP Gobind Singh Deo, Subang Jaya assemblyper-
son Hannah Yeoh, and MPSJ deputy presi-dent Abdullah Marjunid.
Also present were MPSJ councillors K Arumugam, Pooi Weng Keong, R Rajiv, Loka
Ng Sai Kai, Edward Ling Sieak Meeng, Kes-hminder Singh, Chin Sou Bong and Michael Tamilarason, along with Sepang Municipal Council member M Pulanthran.
New crematorium for Puchong by November
Arumugam (right) explaining details of the building plan. Looking on are Loka Ng (left, in background), Liu, Michael Tamilarason, Dr Xavier (with sunglasses) and Abdullah Marjunid (with cap).
By Basil Foo
PUCHONG: Small traders from all over Selangor took part in a basic training workshop held on May 26 on how to utilise Se-langor’s Urban Poor Microcredit (Mimbar) programme.
“For those with no money, their plans remain just dreams. But once they have money, those plans become achievable ambi-tions,” said Mohamad Noor Mahmud.
The Selangor Mimbar senior marketing manager fielded ques-tions from 150 stall owners dur-ing the workshop, which was held at Puchong Indah’s multi-purpose hall.
Mohamad Noor said the mi-crocredit scheme, applicable for those earning less than RM1,500, is intended to be an easier alter-native to applying for a bank loan.
“We don’t ask for your busi-ness permit or bank account number. This is meant to help poor families to work and sustain themselves,” he said.
On whether stall owners could repay their loans before the predetermined due date, Moha-mad Noor said they should hold on to their money.
“Instead of facing shortage of finances and applying for a loan again next time, use your money to expand your business further,” he suggested.
Abdul Halim Khusairi, who runs a burger and fried chicken stall in Taman Tun Perak, Ch-eras, brought up the concerns of Mimbar applicants from his part of town.
The 44-year-old residents’ committee chairperson said he had been asked by residents to find out the status of their micro-credit applications.
“Many have applied for the loans months ago but do not know the status of their applica-tions,” he said.
Halim, who has been operat-ing his stall for the past three years, received a RM3,000 loan from the microcredit scheme after applying for RM5,000.
Hasnah Abd Manap, who sells nasi lemak in Puchong, asked if she could sell dishes that were not included in her initial loan ap-plication form.
“What if we find that the de-
mand for our products was de-creasing? Can we sell nasi ayam in addition to nasi lemak?” asked the 41-year-old.
She was told that stall owners are encouraged to diversify if it could bring in more profits, as the goal of the loan is to help them succeed in business.
Hasnah, who has been work-ing at her present stall for the past two years, applied for a RM2,000 loan but has yet to receive it.
Mimbar public relations man-ager Nor’Ain Eusoff said 104 small business owners received their loan offer letters on May 26, and would receive the money within two weeks.
Officiating the event was Sub-ang Municipal Council 3C Com-plex senior director Haini Mohd Salleh, Puchong MP Gobind Singh Deo, Taman Medan as-semblyperson Hanizah Talha, and Meru assemblyperson Dr Abdul Rani Osman.
Microcredit workshop for stall owners
By William Tan
GOMBAK: Over a hundred peo-ple of all races gathered for a dinner a t D e w a n Mu h i b b a h i n Ta -man Bolton last Saturday to cele-brate unity and foster relationships among one another.
“This is a great way to celebrate unity and a great way to meet all our friends. I only wish it was bigger,” said Akrun Mathajar, 52.
The Kampung Sri Gombak Resi-dents Association member said no-tions of racial divisional are merely political, and he never found it to be an issue on the ground.
He believes that any indication of racial segmentation should be re-moved, such as the declaration need-ed for one’s IC application.
Lim Boon Dak, 68, was of the same opinion, saying he always finds that most people, regardless of race, tend to be friendly.
“I do admit that we are drifting apart these days compared to 20, 30 years before, [but] I believe it has to do with unfair policies, and I don’t think the right policies are properly implemented,” he said.
He added that Malaysians in gen-eral are united, and that in most situ-ations, it simply boils down to toler-ance, compromise, and pure civic sense.
These are values and essentially a way of life that young people should be cultivated into in order to truly promote unity and harmony, Lim added.
Youth, therefore, are the agents of
change, says Khoo Kim Suan, 37.The representative of Triumphant
Christian Centre believes that more youth-oriented activities encouraging unity should be carried out.
“We need focused activities with a clear and consistent purpose, in order to truly bring people together,” she said, citing the example of youth leadership training seminars, where people of all races can come together and pass on useful skills and experi-ences.
She believes there should be fewer speeches made and more action taken by leaders to demonstrate themselves as role models.
Resident Gobula Krishnan, 50, said the change in state government has been the main catalyst for racial unity.
He said while there was clear seg-mentation before, a greater mixing of the races has been more obvious since the government took over the state.
The event was officiated by Sri Andalas assemblyperson Dr Xavier Jayakumar.
Unity still strong among the races
Akrun Mathajar: Racial segmentation should be eliminated.
Halim
Hasnah
15June 3 — 5, 2011
Features
Source: penangdragonboat.gov.my
Roshan shows his mettleThe Asian Youth Championship is the perfect event for Malaysia to benchmark our talent. This year, with the delegation almost com-
pletely made up of our best young players, I took particular interest in the final standings and their rating performance.
Taking that into account, it is only with those 14 years and above that we can consider the results to be stable and indicative.
Teh De Zen, who finished fourth in the U-10 Girls, and Roshan Ajeet Singh, who performed best at 1829 and gained a whopping 17.8 rating points, were the standouts. You can judge for yourself from the featured game.
Get smart! Play chess!
By Peter [email protected]
the strong Mongolian players, together with his draw against another highly ranked Indian and a Filipino talent.
Roshan Ajeet Singh (MAS – 1856)–Nayak R akesh Kumar (IND – 2021)
Asian Youth Championship (U-14) – Round 5
Subic, Philippines 2011
1. d4 f5 2. Bg5 g6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. f3 d5 5.e3 Bg7 6. Bd3 0-0 7. Nge2 Be6 8. Qd2 c6 9. Nf4 Bf7 10. h4 Qc8 11. h5 Nxh5 12. Nxh5 gxh5 13. 0-0-0 e6 14. g4 hxg4 15. fxg4 Bg6 16. Rdg1 Nd7 17. gxf5 exf5 18. Qh2 Nf6 19. Ne2 Nh5 20. Ng3 Nxg3 21. Rxg3 Rf7 22. Rh3 Bf8 23. Be2 Qe6 24. Bf4 Bg7 25. Bh5 Rff8 26. Bxg6 hxg6 27. Rh7 Bf6 28. Qh6 Qe8
29.Bg5 Qf7 30.Rh8+ 1-0
SUBANG JAYA: Making sure mu-nicipality contractors repair potholes promptly to avert accidents is a major concern for Tai Cheng Heng.
“It is their job to identity the pot-holes, prioritise the ones that need ur-gent attention, and take action immedi-ately,” said the Subang Jaya Municipal (MPSJ) councillor.
Tai, 49, wants the council to be more proactive in dealing with public concerns, especially those that pose a hazard to health and safety.
T h e t h r e e - t e r m councillor said he fre-qu entl y g e ts c om-plaints on dead trees, clogged drains and rubbish.
He pointed out that many such complaints are repetitive because of the poor or slow response by the municipality.
Tai and his fellow councillors are trying to come up with a system that enables them to monitor the efficiency of the respective MPSJ departments and their contractors.
This would help them oversee con-tractors who have been assigned jobs by the council and make sure they com-plete their projects without delay.
The civil-engineering graduate said this system is urgently needed because residents have started to lament that some contractors are negligent in car-rying out their work.
Tai is also looking into improving the traffic conditions in Seri Kembangan.
“Most traffic congestion in Seri Kembangan stems from narrow roads and illegal double parking,” he said.
According to Tai, many parking spaces in Seri Kembangan are occupied by illegal hawkers and street traders.
Customers of the stalls double park along the road, causing massive traffic congestion all day long.
“What used to be a proper two-lane road lined with par-allel parking is now a one-lane road with no space for cars to park,” he said.
As a so lution, MPSJ has approved a project to shift all these illegal traders to a ne w market where they will all be issued licences to trade legally.
The relocating will take between three and four months.
Tai hopes that with the illegal trad-ers and hawkers out
of the way, traffic will improve in his area.For the future, Tai is hoping to help
generate more revenue for MPSJ to help them increase their budgets and enable more funding of projects re-quested by the residents.
“One way of generating profits for MPSJ is to charge advertisers who adver-tise on the council’s billboards in their area,” he said.
In the past, advertisers have been us-ing the billboards without paying any-thing to MPSJ. Now, they will have to pay a fee to the council before they are allowed to put up banners.
Any advertisement left unpaid will be deemed illegal.
Tai is on the hunt to get more adver-tisers and direct them to MPSJ to help them get their advertisements up on the council’s billboards.
Know Your Councillor: Tai Cheng Heng
Dragon Boat Festival celebrationBy Brenda Ch’ng
KLANG: Klang MP Charles Santiago wants the Dragon Boat Festival to be recognised as part of Malaysian heritage and be celebrated by all races.
The Dragon Boat Festival, or more commonly known as the Dumpling Festival, is cele-brated annually on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month of the Chinese calendar.
“My office is going to promote the festival this year so that everyone can be enlightened about how and why this festival is cele-brated,” said Santiago.
Santiago will be organising this festival, which falls on June 4, with Klang Municipal (MPK) Councillors, residents as-sociations in Bukit Tinggi, and the state gov-ernment.
There will be a colouring competition open to children aged four to seven, and a “bak chang” wrapping competition open to all ages and races.
Winners will be rewarded with cash prizes, certificates and trophies on that day.
The “bak chang”, made of glutinous rice filled with meat, bean paste or egg yolk, will be judged based on how nicely the dumplings are wrapped and presented.
The “bak chang” (pic) is usually wrapped in bamboo leaves and tied with string. “Bak”
means “meat” in Hokkien, and “chang” means “dumpling”.
According to Chinese his-tory, this festival commemo-rates the minister of the state of Chu, who drowned while fighting corruption in China.
Following his death, the people sailed the river in
boats bearing the head and tail of a dragon in search of their
minister’s body.After failing to retrieve the body,
they started throwing dumplings into the river to ensure that his corpse would not be eaten by fishes.
The festival has since been a colourful event, featuring dragon boat races with audiences cheering them on with dumplings.
The Dumpling Festival organised by Santi-ago will be held on Saturday, June 4, at Jakes Station in Bukit Tinggi 2, Klang from 10am to 12.30pm.
India and China are the super-powers of Asian chess and fight on equal terms on the world stage. It is not often that a young Malaysian is able to dismantle a significantly higher-rated and much better-trained opponent from the land of World Chess Champions (India took a clean sweep of the medals at the Asian Youth!).
This game, which shows Roshan’s strongest side, was published in several local chess blogs, but no less impressive was his two wins against
16 June 3 — 5, 2011
media
Sunway Pyramid bags retail development awardSHAH ALAM: Sunway Pyramid did Malaysia proud when it re-cently clinched the prestigious Prix d’Excellence Award 2011 award at the recent FIABCI World Con-gress 2011 in Cyprus.
The Malaysian development was named the overall winner in the retail development category, which saw worldwide entries judged by a panel of international real estate professionals and ex-perts from the US, United King-dom, Germany, Japan and many other countries.
The mall, with four million square feet and 800 outlets, ex-celled ahead of other entries in the areas of concept, architecture, en-gineering, profitability, marketing results, environmental impact and benefits to the society.
Continuing its signature Egyp-tian-inspired architecture, the mal l differentiate d its entr y through its thematic shopping precincts – Shopping Central, Oasis Boulevard, Asian Avenue and Marrakesh.
Sunway Pyramid also made significant breakthroughs in the implementation of various systems
Attractions aplenty for racing fansBy Basil Foo
SUBANG JAYA: A dance mob kicked off the Super GT Interna-tional Series Malaysia leg during its launch at the Empire Shopping Gallery here last Saturday.
The Super GT International Series Malaysia leg, which will be held on June 18 and 19 at the Sepang International Circuit, will have a carnival-like atmosphere with many side events planned.
“It will be the first time that two major rave parties are held the night before the race – Velocita and Femme Fatale,” said Chin Jit Pyng.
The JPM Motorsports founder, who spoke to a crowd of race enthusiasts and mall-goers at the launch, said the rave parties would consist of R&B and trance music, with celebrities and top inter-national DJs.
He said the race would also host the first rock concert to be held on the track itself, which will feature local bands like Hujan, Azlan and the Typewriter, and Indonesian band Radja.
The race will also offer a Touch and Go special-edition Super GT card, which comes with every grand-
stand ticket purchase. “These cards will allow visitors to
shop cashless on that day. Don’t forget to use it after the event for tolls,” Chin said.
The race is being heralded as the only leg of the Super GT to be held outside of Japan, with GT queens and Japanese drummers brought into the country to liven up the scene.
Race-goers can expect meet-and-greet sessions with famous racers, a flea market with 60 stalls, and a kid’s zone with painting competitions and clowns.
The event will be carried by main broadcasters RTM, with all nine rounds of the race available for public viewing on national television.
Tourism S elang or wi l l b e assisting the advertising of the event as the state’s official tourism board and will be promoting the race in their capacity.
The trophy this year was designed and sponsored by Temasek Pewter, who will also be giving away a duplicate trophy to one lucky win-ner during the race.
For more information or to buy tickets, visit www.supergt.com.my.
Ngeow receiving the award from (centre) Lakis Tofarides, president of Cyprus Land and Building Developers Association. Looking on is Enrico Campagnoli.
20 ⁄ June 3 – 5, 2011 ⁄ SELANGOR TIMES
Al-FatihahOur Deepest and Heartfelt Condolences to
His Royal Highness Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah AlhajIbni Almarhum Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah Alhaj
D.K. D.M.N., D.K. (Terengganu).,D.K. (Kelantan)., D.K. (Perak)., D.K. (Perlis)., D.K. (Negeri Sembilan)., D.K. (Kedah)., D.K. (Johor).,S.P.M.S., S.S.I.S., S.P.M.J.
and
THe SelAngoR RoyAl FAmIlyon the demise of
HIS RoyAl HIgHneSS’ beloved moTHeRyAng mAHA mulIA PAdukA bondA RAjA SelAngoR
RAjA SAIdATul IHSAn bInTI Tengku bAdAR SHAHon
31`st may 2011 (27 jamadilAkhir 1432 H)“Semoga Allah SWT mencucuri rahmat ke atas rohnya”
from
The management & Staff of
in the shopping mall industry. Among the notable innovations
are the Car Park Guiding System, which allows motorists to locate vacant carpark bay quickly through indicators on the ceiling; waterless urinals, which eliminate the need for water flushing ; dual access ramps from both sides of the high-way; and an auxiliary police force as part of its security.
Sunway Pyramid managing di-
rector Datuk Ngeow Voon Yean received the award from Cyprus Land and Building Developers’ Association president Lakis Tofa-rides at the award presentation ceremony.
Also present were FIABCI World President Enrico Campag-noli, FIABCI Prix d’Excellence Awards 2011 president Laszlo Gonczi, and FIABCI Cyprus presi-dent Dinos Michaelidas.
SELANGOR TIMES ⁄ June 3 – 5, 2011 ⁄ 17
Al-FatihahOur Deepest and Heartfelt Condolences to
His Royal Highness Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah AlhajIbni Almarhum Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah AlhajD.K. D.M.N., D.K. (Terengganu).,D.K. (Kelantan)., D.K. (Perak)., D.K. (Perlis)., D.K. (Negeri Sembilan).,
D.K. (Kedah)., D.K. (Johor).,S.P.M.S., S.S.I.S., S.P.M.J.
and
THe SelAngoR RoyAl FAmIly
on the demise of
HIS RoyAl HIgHneSS’ beloved moTHeRyAng mAHA mulIA PAdukA bondA RAjA SelAngoR
RAjA SAIdATul IHSAn bInTI Tengku bAdAR SHAH
on
31`st may 2011 (27 jamadilAkhir 1432 H)
“Semoga Allah SWT mencucuri rahmat ke atas rohnya”
from
The menteri besar of Selangor
Tan Sri dato Seri Abdul khalid Ibrahim
&
members of State executive Council, the state government and the people of Selangor
Al-FatihahOur Deepest and Heartfelt Condolences to
His Royal Highness Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah AlhajIbni Almarhum Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah AlhajD.K. D.M.N., D.K. (Terengganu).,D.K. (Kelantan)., D.K. (Perak)., D.K. (Perlis)., D.K. (Negeri Sembilan).,
D.K. (Kedah)., D.K. (Johor).,S.P.M.S., S.S.I.S., S.P.M.J.
and
THe SelAngoR RoyAl FAmIly
on the demise of
HIS RoyAl HIgHneSS’ beloved moTHeRyAng mAHA mulIA PAdukA bondA RAjA SelAngoR
RAjA SAIdATul IHSAn bInTI Tengku bAdAR SHAH
on
31`st may 2011 (27 jamadilAkhir 1432 H)
“Semoga Allah SWT mencucuri rahmat ke atas rohnya”
from
The Chairman, board of directors, Subsidiaries group, management & Staff of
18 ⁄ June 3 – 5, 2011 ⁄ SELANGOR TIMES
SELANGOR TIMES ⁄ June 3 – 5, 2011 ⁄ 19
Al-FatihahOur Deepest and Heartfelt Condolences to
His Royal Highness Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah AlhajIbni Almarhum Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah AlhajD.K. D.M.N., D.K. (Terengganu).,D.K. (Kelantan)., D.K. (Perak)., D.K. (Perlis)., D.K. (Negeri Sembilan).,
D.K. (Kedah)., D.K. (Johor).,S.P.M.S., S.S.I.S., S.P.M.J.
and
THe SelAngoR RoyAl FAmIly
on the demise of
HIS RoyAl HIgHneSS’ beloved moTHeRyAng mAHA mulIA PAdukA bondA RAjA SelAngoR
RAjA SAIdATul IHSAn bInTI Tengku bAdAR SHAH
on
31`st may 2011 (27 jamadilAkhir 1432 H)
“Semoga Allah SWT mencucuri rahmat ke atas rohnya”
from
The management & Staff of
20 ⁄ June 3 – 5, 2011 ⁄ SELANGOR TIMES
Al-FatihahOur Deepest and Heartfelt Condolences to
His Royal Highness Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah AlhajIbni Almarhum Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah AlhajD.K. D.M.N., D.K. (Terengganu).,D.K. (Kelantan)., D.K. (Perak)., D.K. (Perlis)., D.K. (Negeri Sembilan).,
D.K. (Kedah)., D.K. (Johor).,S.P.M.S., S.S.I.S., S.P.M.J.
and
THe SelAngoR RoyAl FAmIly
on the demise of
HIS RoyAl HIgHneSS’ beloved moTHeRyAng mAHA mulIA PAdukA bondA RAjA SelAngoR
RAjA SAIdATul IHSAn bInTI Tengku bAdAR SHAH
on
31`st may 2011 (27 jamadilAkhir 1432 H)
“Semoga Allah SWT mencucuri rahmat ke atas rohnya”
from
The management & Staff of
yayasan Selangor
SELANGOR TIMES ⁄ June 3 – 5, 2011 ⁄ 21
Al-FatihahOur Deepest and Heartfelt Condolences to
His Royal Highness Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah AlhajIbni Almarhum Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah AlhajD.K. D.M.N., D.K. (Terengganu).,D.K. (Kelantan)., D.K. (Perak)., D.K. (Perlis)., D.K. (Negeri Sembilan).,
D.K. (Kedah)., D.K. (Johor).,S.P.M.S., S.S.I.S., S.P.M.J.
and
THe SelAngoR RoyAl FAmIly
on the demise of
HIS RoyAl HIgHneSS’ beloved moTHeRyAng mAHA mulIA PAdukA bondA RAjA SelAngoR
RAjA SAIdATul IHSAn bInTI Tengku bAdAR SHAH
on
31`st may 2011 (27 jamadilAkhir 1432 H)
“Semoga Allah SWT mencucuri rahmat ke atas rohnya”
from
The Chairman, board of directors, management & Staff of
Permodalan negeri Selangor berhad
25th Floor, Wisma MBSA, Persiaran Perbandaran, 40000 Shah Alam, Selangor. Tel: 03-5510 7105 / 7233 / 7234 Fax: 03-5510 7232 / 5512 9528 E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.pnsb.com.my
Tingkat 25, Wisma MBSA, Persiaran Perbandaran, 40000 Shah Alam, Selangor. Tel: 03-5510 7105 / 7233 / 7234 Faks: 03-5510 7232 / 5512 9528 E-mel: [email protected] Laman Web: www.pnsb.com.my
25th Floor, Wisma MBSA, Persiaran Perbandaran, 40000 Shah Alam, Selangor. Tel: 03-5510 7105 / 7233 / 7234 Fax: 03-5510 7232 / 5512 9528 E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.pnsb.com.my
Tingkat 25, Wisma MBSA, Persiaran Perbandaran, 40000 Shah Alam, Selangor. Tel: 03-5510 7105 / 7233 / 7234 Faks: 03-5510 7232 / 5512 9528 E-mel: [email protected] Laman Web: www.pnsb.com.my
22 JUNE 3 — 5, 2011
Gallery
Models looking classy in the French colours of the Salabianca collection at Sunway Pyramid, which concluded its fashion month of May with an exclusive fashion preview finale last Thursday (May 26).
A dance mob kicking off the Super GT International Series Malaysia leg during its launch at the Empire Shopping Gallery in Subang Jaya last Saturday.
Construction begins on a new crematorium in Bandar Puchong Utama. State executive councillor Ronnie Liu sits in the driver’s seat accompanied by fellow exco Dr Xavier Jeyakumar on his left, Puchong MP Gobind Singh and Subang Jaya assemblyperson Hannah Yeoh (standing), and other councillors.
Councillor R Rajiv painting a fire hydrant during the joint initiative between SS17, Subang Jaya residents and the Bomba last Saturday. On Rajiv’s right is Rukun Tetangga USJ 2 and USJ 6 president Ang How Chuan, and on his left is SS17 fire station chief Deputy Superintendent Khairi Daud. Surrounding them are residents and students from SMK Seafield’s Fire and Rescue Cadets.
Desmond Teh coaching his children's football team, Team Rhinos, who are part of the Subang Jaya Community Youth Football League.
23JUNE 3 — 5, 2011
CULTURE
By Terence Toh
What good is sitting alone in your room?Come hear the music play.Life is a Cabaret, old chum,Come to the Cabaret! – Sally Bowles, Cabaret
John Kander and Fred Ebb’s Cabaret, one of the most beloved and influential musicals in history, was staged by PAN Productions at the Kuala
Lumpur Performing Arts Centre from May 6 to 15. This musical, like its main characters, is a strange
marriage of odd contrasts: juxtaposing tongue-in-cheek, humorous musical numbers with dark themes such as decadence, prejudice and the disillusionment from false dreams. In less capable hands, the show could have felt awkward and jarring, its extreme tone changes causing its audience to disconnect.
Thankfully, due to a spirited cast and capable directing, PAN’s Cabaret succeeded.
The most notable aspect of this production was its extremely inspired staging: every inch of the relatively small stage space of KLPAC’s Pentas 2 was effectively used. Backdrops, moving scenery, overhead railings, and set pieces were all put into play, serving very well in establishing the musical’s many settings.
Whether it was the tense atmosphere of a wedding party that slowly turns wrong, the intimate chambers of protagonist Clifford Bradshaw’s room, or the glitz of the stage at the Kit Kat Club, space was utilised fantastically in this production, with scenes dramatised and transitioned to and from, capably.
The cast did a wonderful job. One of the best things about this staging of Cabaret was its effective balancing of both the stage band and its performer’s vocals, thus avoiding the problem faced by many local musicals: that of the performer being drowned out by music. Every lyric of every song was clear throughout, which is truly commendable.
Peter Davis did a decent job as Clifford Bradshaw, his serious, controlled demeanor an effective foil to the larger-than-life personalities of the other characters.
Stephanie Van Driesen shone as the promiscuous, emotional cabaret performer Sally Bowles, her rich, mellow voice proving to be mesmerising on numbers such as the hopeful Maybe This Time and the soaring title song.
While her character’s over-the-top mannerisms can occasionally grate, Van Driesen succeeded in her performance, bringing Sally Bowles to life as a frivolous, selfish attention seeker very well aware of her own faults, desperately retreating into her façade of a carefree, seductive performer as escapism.
Alizakri Alias and Zalina Lee performed wonderfully as unlikely couple Herr Schultz and Fraulein Schneider, their unexpected, tragic romance forming the emotional heart of Cabaret.
The undisputed star, however, was Peter Ong, who was simply fantastic as the flamboyant, androgynous Emcee, stealing the show with his outrageous outfits
and wild behaviour. Managing to be both likeable as well as menacing,
Ong’s performances – particularly in The Money Song and If You Could See Her – were a delight, often serving as sharp commentary on human behavior as well as the events of the play.
The supporting cast also gave good performances, with Bernie Chan in particular delivering a memorable performance as sailor-crazy lodger Fraulein Kost.
Cabaret’s ensemble performed well together, and their big number at the end of Act One, the dark anthem Tomorrow Belongs To Me, was the highlight of the show. Dancing, while not fantastic or particularly memorable, was done well.
My only nitpick with Cabaret would be its storyline, which was incredibly dark and ended on a heavy, somewhat abrupt note. While this was remaining true to the subject matter and original material, and therefore was no fault of the production team, one cannot help but think that Cabaret’s story folded rather prematurely, with a resolution that might come across as unsatisfying.
Regardless, Cabaret was one of the more accomplished musical productions to be staged here, and the team at PAN Productions, particularly director Nell Ng, should be commended for their efforts. A true testament to what local theatre can be capable of.
A dazzling, top-notch Cabaret CALENDAR
Compiled by Nick ChooSend your events to [email protected]
Buto 3: 3 Performers, 3 Solos, 3 Interpretations
Dance; June 3 & 4; Annexe Gallery @ Central Market KL; 03-20701137, www.annexegallery.com; RM20
“Buto is usually heavy and intense, but this time Nyoba Kan tries to be casual and easy. Is that easier or harder? Who cares, as long as it is weird, wonderful and wired.” Nyoba Kan presents three solo pieces by Jess, Lai Chee & Kuan Nam. With sharings by artistic director Lee Swee Keong, and Q&A after each piece.
Shelah says Life’s A Drag
Comedy; June 3-5; PJ Live Arts @ Jaya One; 03-79600439, www.pjla.com.my; RM60/RM30
Shelah, the fiercest Glamazonian Drag Queen in KL and star of her own radio show on BFM, share her views on life as we know it. Everything she’s been banned from saying on radio, she’s going to tell you live on stage. No censor button. Featuring Edwin Sumun; part of the PJ Laugh Fest 2011.
Unmasked.Ed
Exhibition; June 7-19; Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre; 03-40479000, www.klpac.org; free admission
An art exhibition presented by Malay Singaporean artist Syahidah Osman Cawley. “The works cover about a 10-year period in her life. Many of the pieces are of the people closest to her, particularly her husband and eldest son, Ainan. This reflects the composition of the family … she has striven to speak of the inner quality of her subjects in each piece.”
Rock Scissors Shadow Boxer
Dance; June 15 & 16; Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre; 03-40479000, www.klpac.org; RM35/RM20
“Three choreographic works about a game that cannot be won.” Featuring Noord Nederlandse Dans, a contemporary dance company based in Groningen, the Netherlands. Rock is choreographed by Roy Asaaf; Scissors and Shadow Boxer
by Noord Nederlandse Dans artistic director Stephen Shropshire.
Ri Yue Chu Yin: The Birth of Hands Percussion Gamelan
Concert; June 9-12; Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre; 03-40479000, www.klpac.org; RM48-RM128
Eight Mallets Percussion, a world-class percussion group from Beijing, joins Hands Percussion as special guest artiste in this collaborative concert. “An exciting journey to celebrate the unity of Armour and Skin.”
(Above) Stephanie Van Driesen shone as Sally Bowles. (Below) Scenes from the musical.
